THE FREE PRESS SUMMERFEST AD from Free Video Houston on Vimeo.

UPDATED: Join us DIRB! DJs at the Fancy Pants Stage at the Free Press Summer Fest on Saturday and Sunday for some cool jams–literally!

The VIP stage in the Bowl near Buffalo Bayou sponsored by Fahrenheit-Media and our Dusty Crates blog of course, is air conditioned! YES, I said AC!! Which will make it a nice break from the heat/humidity and the hotter acts at the Fest.

Brett Koshkin

Just added to the lineup: Dirty Honey’s funk master Brett Koshkin will join DIRB! DJs on Saturday. So come by and cool off with us, Gracie Chavez, Squincy Jones, G.Wizz,  Tonio, plus local hip hop act Nosaprise, electro duo Ghost Mountain, rappers Guerrilla Foco Clan, DJ Meshak, hip hop artist Mic Skillz and more special acts.

Check back for a performance lineup!

To purchase pre-sale passes and get up to date information please visit: www.FreePressSummerFest.com

Then later Saturday night, it’s the DIRB! After-Party at The Lot on Washington (4212 Washington, 77007) with Gracie Chavez and Tonio doin it real big!

Bring lotsa water and sunscreen…this weekend’s gonna be straight fiya!

Co-sponsored by www.DustyCrates.com and www.Fahrenheit-Media.com.

Gracie, Dayta, Morsy and DJ Sun huddled up. Photo by Article

A major cold front overcast a lot of SXSW plans on for many Saturday. After layering up as much as possible, we headed out to see if we could weather the last SXSW day/night.

The first stop was Levi’s Fader Fort. Once you braved the cold, long line to get in, Levi’s had the right idea by setting up a retail area right as you step in. This is where most Fader Fort guests snapped up whatever was left of long-sleeve T’s, hoodies and jackets just to stay warm.

Linked with DJ Sun, Dayta and Morsy to catch the end of Salem’s lackadaisical performance, which was literally “booed”. I can’t say that out of all the shows I’ve attended, I’ve never seen an act get the proverbial rotten tomatoes cast at them. Ouch!

It was too cold to stay and watch Poirier’s DJ set outside so we warmed up to a bluegrass band inside the Fort.

I had Morsy photo bomb the poor lads!

Next up, it was Carnaville with Major Lazer. G.Wizz and I caught the end of “Pon de Floor” along with the thinning crowd. Not even a hot cup of chocolate could keep us there. Sorry Diplo and Switch! There were reports that the carnival eventually shut down early.

After grubbing at Cuba Libre and more photo bombing courtesy of G.Wizz, we moved on to Malverde for the highlight of my night: some git down funk, Latin and soul by none other than Chicken George. The spot was so bumpin, I didn’t wanna leave. But we also thought there was more left to see.

Later, we walked by the Vice party but the line was wrapped around the building. That nonsense got the big deuce! And so did the line at Beauty Bar down the street. Cover was $10 just to see Treasure Fingers at 1 a.m.

Finally, we caught the end of Rye Rye’s performance at the Billboard stage, had a Lone Star at some random bar at the end of 6th Street and called it a night before 2 a.m. This is pretty much what the night cap looked like…

When you're in Texas, do it like Texans do--DIRB!

Although this year’s SXSW seemed a bit lack luster, here are a few of the Dusty Crates highlights:

Squincy ain't skurred of la Chupacabra.

Bobby def was.

HTX deep!

Finally, a nice shot!

See more Dusty Crates SXSW 2010 photos.

And last but not least, Dave Wrangler wrapped it up best with this recap mix. You went the distance with this one, bro!

SXDW: The Unofficial Guide to SXSW 2010 (Soundcloud)– Dave Wrangler

Track Listing:
1. Sleigh Bells – Beach Girls
2. Theophilus London – Enjoy the Sun
3. Gorillaz – Stylo
4. The Hood Internet – Just-A-Friendomania
5. Little Boots – New In Town (Golden Filter Remix)
6. The Golden Filter – Hide Me
7. Hot Chip – One Life Stand
8. LCD Soundsystem – Too Much Love
9. The Gossip – Heavy Cross (Yuksek Remix)
10. La Roux – Quicksand (AutoKratz Drags to Riches Remix)
11. David Guetta feat. Kid Cudi – Memories (Armand Van Helden Remix)
12. The Juan Maclean – No Time (Shit Robot Remix)
13. Phoenix – 1901 (The Dirty Tees Remix)
14. Yeasayer – O.N.E. (XXXChange Remix)
15. Asher Roth – She Don’t Wanna Man (Yes Giantess Remix)
16. Gorillaz – Stylo (Alex Metric Remix)

Hope to see ya’ll  in Austin again next year!

Photo courtesy of Psyne for Mattsizzle

Last night (Friday) we rolled into Austin and set up the very first, official Dusty Crates showcase at Chupacabra Cantina (400 6th St, ATX). G.Wizz kicked it off with some rock and other choice selections before Squincy and I stepped up (literally). Did I mention that the DJ booth was set up for Godzilla?

Chupacabra was HTX deep with familiar faces in the crowd–shout out goes to Bjorn, Dessa, Denise and company, Bobby, Go Go Garcia, my boy Psyne (you’re a soldier!), sis Maggie and Keith for keeping the dance floor (and drinks) moving.

OKC’s Blake Ward and cohort Dylan stepped in for DJ Cat NYC, who was DJing over at the Vice Party. Meanwhile, G.Wizz and I stepped out on 6th for a bit and ran into the jazztronica man himself, DJ Chicken George, who hipped us to a screen printing session by The Hit and Run crew. Thanks for the t-shirts, dudes!

Back at Chupacabra, I got a surprise visit by Daniel Allen, my arch nemesis. Ha! He joined me on the decks for a little back and forth before closing it out.

Thanks to Reprogram, Marcus and Nikki at LegitArt Entertainment for making us feel so welcome. And a big nod goes to G.Wizz for coming thru with sound–as always. Photos up soon.

And did I mention: Squincy Jones just hates me.

Can you spell FEBRUARY?

It’s playtime again!

After playing musical chairs with the lineup, DIRB! welcomes special guest DJ/remixer Panchitron. Along the same veins as Toy Selectah and Uproot Andy, Houston’s Panchitron mixes up tropical bass, cumbia, house and ghetto to get you to the floor. !Puro fuego! [Spanish lesson: straight fire!]

He’s starting things off for the Recess crew including that bad boy Squincy Jones who’s finally out of Time Out and ready to play nice!

Finally, thanks to Oahn (www.soundslike1.com) for the dope-ass flyer. If we would have have animated it, we could have played on it like this: SPEAK & SPELL.

GOODBYE,
D-I-R-B!

Austin’s Big Face couldn’t make this SDC pre-Valentine’s event last week, so G.Wizz and I stepped in to cover at the last minute. Get well soon, *smiley face.

Meanwhile, I’m not sure I can top Squincy’s Awwready rave review (sic), so I had to repost it hurr…

Hey look a rave

Last week I opened up for Drop the Lime and played a gnar gnar DARSHSTEP set. I was nervous as shit the whole week pretty much because I was supposed to play 2 gigs that night, DTL & Gritsy, but ended up not playing Gritsy due to time constraints. =/ Heres a couple flicks from the portyyyyy. (Flicks by Mad Bass & Steven Sartini)

Tonight, Friday 12/11/09, the DIRB! Fam is live on MK Ultra Radio Show, KTRU’s only live electronic mix show in Houston since…oh, I’d say 1996.

After my webcast on Brick City House (ChicagoHouseFM.com) last week, we’re all doin’ it ol’ school and broadcasting live on the air waves.

Starting at 9pm, DJs on board to “bring the noise” are:

G.WIZZ
JEP
GRACIE CHAVEZ
TONIO
SQUINCY JONES

If you’re in the H, dial your radio knob into KTRU 91.7 FM. To give us BIG LOVE during the show, call in at 713-348-KTRU. Or, if you’re global, listen in at http://ktru.org/listen.shtml.

MK Ultra has a rotating staff of radio jocks, like DJ Great Scott, from Rice University each semester; many thanks to you guys for the invites each time, and also for keeping us on the ayre!

And Sandeep, I know you’re out there somewhere. Thanks for getting this show off the ground; It’s still goin’ strong here in the H. Holler at a girl if you’re still tuning in!

For more on the MK Ultra radio show, visit www.myspace.com/mkultrashow.

Check back for downloads and track listings, or go to our sister forum at www.subcrates.com for more rambling comments. Yep, yep!

Update: G.Wizz, Jep and I played on the radio for 3 hours. Thanks to Manny and Paul at KTRU’s MK Ultra for having us out. The cozy mix session was just perfect for a cold and rainy Friday night!

DIRB! Live on MK Ultra Radio (KTRU) 12/2009 (3-hour mix)

1st hour – G.WIZZ
2nd hour – JEP
3rd hour – GRACIE CHAVEZ

Gracie Chavez & Jep DIRB! on MK Ultra 12/2009 (zshare)

GRACIE CHAVEZ Track Listing

1. Heads Will Roll (A-Trak remix) – Yeah Yeah Yeahs
2. Right Hand High (Kingdom remix) – Kid Sister
3. Black & Blue (Savage Skulls remix) – Miike Snow
4. Kids (Soul Wax remix) – MGMT
5. Woz Not Woz (Dub mix) – Eryk Prydz & Steve Angello
6. Sweat on the Walls – John Tejada
7. Be Alone No More (Another Level) – Rip Groove
8. Spin Spin Sugar – Sneaker Pimps
9. Hold the Line (Golden Gloves Wobble & Shake remix) – Major Lazer
10. Animal (Fake Blood remix) – Miike Snow
11. Let You Go – Bounce Camp
12. Replacement Girl (Illo Bounce Edit) – Drake & Trey
13. Flashing Lights (Diplo remix) – Kanye West
14. I’m Here You’re There (MWG) – Ernest Gonzales
15. A Man’s World (Regrooved by Parker) – James Brown

Wow, it’s been a while since I’ve written here. What, maybe two weeks? Well, that’s way too long. Since then we experienced Oktoberfest in August, the start/end of a *ahem* new monthly (it had potential–just sayin), and the close of a high-flying venue (it went three months strong, yay! *applause*). Here’s the long-overdue recap:

Lasting longer than the requisite 16-day beer fest, Sista Stroke’s tour through Texas evidently still has some of us in an intoxicating honeymoon phase. The newlywed popped into the H for special “homecoming” performance at The Flat’s Sideways Tuesday with DJ Pooks & Drew and then played along with Eddie Spettro in her original hometown, San Antonio. Who knows how long she’ll be in the Lone Star State or if she’ll make another cameo behind the decks before jumping the pond back to London. But if you happen to somehow miss her Freaking Freely here, you can always tune into Mr. and Mrs. Hun’s Brick City House podcast sponsored by ChicagoHouseFM.com on Wednesdays.

Meanwhile, the DIRBY! came out of the starting gates at a slow trot. I’ll admit, we enjoyed the pageantry and newish spot; who cares if there wasn’t much participation–we still had fun. We did manage to declare a DIRBY! mustache winner at the end of the night. Thanks to TABC’s late entry, we thought G.Wizz had it in the bag until said agent and pahtnah swaggered in at 1:45 a.m. He won, hand(lebar)s down!

Speaking of going down, let’s all pause for a moment of silence for the untimely demise of the indirigible airship-themed venue. In it’s heyday it was a mecca for Rich’s over-spill; in its most recent short-lived rendering, it was a ragbag of music and misfits. And although it didn’t amass the notable acts and acclaim that Walter’s on Washington did, it goes to show that throngs of d-bags don’t always ruin it for everyone.

So now that we’re moving on, I should note that DIRB! Block Party is on an indefinite hiatus from Washington Ave. Last Saturday’s performance with Jessica Lozano at the Boo Williams show at Block was certainly memorable enough that I recorded our Les Femmes reunion. G.Wizz capped it off on the decks after 3 a.m. Click below for a listen.

On short notice, however, I’m closing out the HMNS Mixer & Elixirs summer series tonight before the lively Latin act Grupo Ka-Che takes over the Dino Exhibit Hall. It’s been a fun gig all summer long, thanks to the open-minded museum curators!

And tomorrow, Saturday, 8/29, Antonio & I are DIRH! (Doin It Real House) again at the swanky Zimm’s wine bar while LBO Takes 5. And heed this: no socks for shoes people! RSVP pronto on Facebook >>

Meanwhile, I’ve updated DustyCrates’ sideline events widget with upcoming event flyers. Peep it. iCal it. Twitter it.

And as promised, more music mixes:

DIRB! Live on KTRU (May 2009) (mp3)
Listen to the 3-hour long live mix with Squincy Jones, Gracie Chavez, Tonio, G.Wizz & Jep in it’s entirety.

Les Femmes Gracie Chavez & Jessica Lozano Live at Boo (August 2009) (Zshare)
Thanks to HMH’s Jep, I’m learning to record on the iKey-Audio. Here’s the raw, 3-hour live set from last Saturday.

Thanks for reading this extended DustyCrates Blog-a-thon of the Month. You’re now exempt from the pop quiz.

Neon Nites kicks off their 2nd monthly installment at Zeppelin (3101 San Jacinto) with the usual suspects–Fixture, G.Wizz, Bristle, Jeff Mac–and featuring El Nino.

If you can stand the hot glow of the bangers played tonight, then you’ve definitely found your destination for the night. Just don’t leave home without your sunglasses! Shit’s gonna be hot! See Sideline Events for more info –>

Appropriately, the Soular Grooves camp will bring some warmth to the patio, thanks to Eric Salzman, Jibril and Seth Jones.

Although this is out of order, I feel it necessary to post the DIRB! Live on KTRU Part 4 mix from G.Wizz & Jep.

LISTEN/DOWNLOAD DIRB! Live On KTRU – G.Wizz & Jep PT. 4

http://www.zshare.net/audio/61629917d5d990ef/

Holler if you need at track listing: dirb2008@gmail.com

Enjoy it! I’ve got the final part of this live mix with me and Antonio cued up for next week.

Family Photo

Squincy Jones joins the DIRB! fam live on KTRU tonight…

DIRB! DJs Gracie Chavez & Antonio team up with G.Wizz (Neon Nites) & Jep for 3 hours of non-stop live mixing on KTRU 91.7 FM (ktru.org).

From 9 pm-12 am on KTRU’s MK Ultra DJ show, we’ll journey through an eclectic soundscape of music genres–downtempo, cumbia, dub, breaks, hip hop, world beats, classics, house, disco, electro, dance rock, etc…

Tune in locally >> 91.7 FM in Houston area
Listen here globally >> http://www.mkultra.us/
Download here futuristically >> http://mkultra.us/audio
Call in >> 713.348.KTRU

About MK Ultra
For years, the MK Ultra show has been one of the main driving forces behind Houston’s electronic dance music scene. Indeed, it is where many of Houston’s finest DJs got their start, and has even led some to world fame, including the likes of Jake Childs, Andrei Morant, Chris Anderson, and Henry Chow to name a few…So sit back, and take a look around – there’s lots of goodies here from sentimental photos to slamming DJ Mixes! http://mkultra.us/audio

Updates and info at www.dustycrates.com at www.fahrenheit-media.com.

G.Wizz & Criminal Vox

DIRB!'s Gracie Chavez & Karma's Kung Fu Pimp

Amish & The Twins

This is how it pretty much went dawn on Saturday! Powerhouse trifecta with DIRB!, Karma and Gritsy teaming up for a special event at Block 21. Thanks to all involved for setting it off!

Wish you coulda been there!

More DIRB! Block Party photos on Facebook:

• DIRB! + Karma + Gritsy (pt 1)
• DIRB! + Karma + Gritsy (pt 2)
• DIRB! + Karma + Gritsy (pt 3)

Photos by Suraj Kurian for Karma Houston. Thanks for the roving lens!

Join our FB groups for more event updates:

• Block 21 on Facebook
• DIRB! in TX on Facebook